Rob Bell is a New York Times best-selling author who also was pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Michigan, one of the fastest-growing megachurches in the country. Last year, Bell suddenly left that position to, in the words of a church spokesman, “devote his full energy to sharing the message of God's love with a broader audience.”

What's clear from his writing and the content of his popular NOOMA videos that explore our world from a perspective of Jesus is that Bell is disillusioned with the state of the modern evangelical movement.

Not surprisingly, many in this movement have criticized Bell's ideas, calling them laughable and even heretical. It's an interesting response that plays right into the subject matter of his latest book: “What We Talk About When We Talk About God.”

In it, Bell clearly is thinking of himself when he quotes the German scholar Helmut Thielicke: “A person who speaks to this hour's need will always be skirting the edge of heresy, but only the person who risks those heresies can gain the truth.”

Bell is onto something, and this book presents some remarkable and ultimately hopeful ideas about man's complicated relationship with God.

Interestingly, the first third of the book is devoted to quantum theory and the mysterious nature of the universe. Here, Bell gives a straightforward and thoughtful treatment to a complicated subject. While many physicists use quantum theory to discount the idea of a creator, Bell uses it to build a compelling case for the reality of a supreme, loving intelligence.

Bell is excited by his subject matter. His prognostications can be corny at times, but that also is part of his appeal. Bell looks at deep theological and metaphysical issues with childlike wonder.

He also says that civilization is “in the midst of a massive rethink” regarding spirituality. Bell believes this shift will take spirituality back from religious leaders who traffic in certainty.

Instead, Bell says, we should rejoice in the uncertainty, and the idea that biblical and human history has shown us a God who, in the midst of this uncertainty, is always calling us forward to a deeper relationship.

In Bell's view, uncertainty is not a hindrance to a relationship with God, but rather a necessary pathway to it: “Doubt is often a sign that your faith has a pulse, that it's alive and well and exploring and searching. Faith and doubt aren't opposites; they are, it turns out, excellent dance partners.” This is perhaps the most profound idea in the book, and a refreshing one, especially in today's religious atmosphere.

Bell sees Jesus less as a religious figure and more as a radical teacher who “doesn't divide the world up into the common and the sacred.” While this unconventional view of Jesus is not new, Bell tackles it with enthusiasm and a skilled use of language. An optimist, he ends the book with these hopeful words: “I believe you and I are only scratching the surface of what's possible.”